1. Field
This disclosure generally relates to the field of wood graining systems. More particularly, the disclosure relates to wood graining systems for artificial props.
2. General Background
Artificial props are typically used as an alternative to real objects in a variety of environments such as theme parks, zoos, aquariums, etc., since such artificial props are typically much less expensive than the corresponding real objects. Such props may include wood grained props, i.e., props that have the appearance of an arrangement of wood fibers and the texture of such arrangement. The wood grained props may have a straight grain arrangement of fibers, i.e., fibers that run parallel to the longitudinal axis of the artificial prop, or a cross grain arrangement of fibers, i.e., fibers that run in a spiral or a diagonal pattern with respect to the longitudinal axis of the artificial prop. Use of such artificial props typically necessitates significantly less expensive maintenance than real props. For example, watering and trimming of the artificial props is not necessary.
Yet, the artificial wood props often lack the durability of the corresponding real props. For example, artificial wood props tend to lose their realistic appearance, melt, drip, fall apart, break, etc. when present in a harsh weather environment. Further, artificial wood props must be implemented in a way that meets the high safety standards of an entertainment environment, e.g., a theme park. For example, in the event of high heat or fire, the artificial wood props should resist burning, melting, and dripping. Further, construction of the artificial wood props often involves significant skilled manual labor. An expensive epoxy would typically have to be obtained and then manually sculpted to form the artificial props. In addition, current construction methods often lead to artificial wood props that are heavy. As a result, moving the artificial wood props to different locations in a particular environment can be quite difficult. Weight may constrain the construction of large props and may require more complex and expensive support structures such as flooring and framing to support them.
Therefore, current wood graining processes do not provide a cost effective and resource effective approach to generating artificial wood props. A process for generating a safe, flexible, and durable artificial wood prop in a cost effective and realistic manner is needed.